RE: [ihc] Anybody want to tow to Dixie?

["Mac McMuffin" <mac@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

## >> If terrain is not a problem, goto U-Haul and purchase their tow bar.
## >> Approx $100.

back the truck up here.  when i got mine, it was $128 for the bar at U-Haul.
reading the labels it carries it is the Draw-Tite 33-305-1368 SAE Class 3
towbar, folding/removable.  worth every cent, too.  everybody should have
one of these.

my mom's 4x4 Ford Ranger has a folding towbar on the bumper, but it cost
significantly more than mine did.  it's one of those ones that adjusts and
does all kinds of neat stuff, and then folds up against the bumper and
grille of the pickup instead of having to take it off to fold it up.  really
neat towbar, but it weighs more than a hundred pounds, and sticks out
considerably from the bumper.  the Ranger also has an in-cab cable switch
thing to disconnect the rear driveline, and a front bumper hookup to tie the
lights and brakes into the tow vehicle's.  pretty neat setup, but WAY more
complicated and expensive than i wanted to do with our Scout.

## >> Comes with "towed vehicle mounting tackle."

wish somebody had told me where to get that model...  mine didn't come with
anything extra.  it was just the bar and the bumper mounts.  i had to buy
the safety chains separately.  being the guy that i am, i went to the
biggest hardware store in town (Fresno Ag, GREAT place) and had some big
heavy chains made up for me the way i wanted them.  if U-Haul sells a bar
that comes with the "vehicle mounting tackle", i didn't see it there.
unless "vehicle mounting tackle" just means the two bumper mounts, and not
the safety chains?

## >> Even (ahemm...) "mac who still has the first penny ever given to him",
## >> thought the U-Haul tow bar was a good deal.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!  hey, if you're trying to imply i'm cheap...  well...
okay, i am.  +)  but i don't have the first penny ever given to me.  or the
first dollar.  i didn't get to be cheap till i had kids.  <wicked grin>
amazing how having kids changes your fiscal outlook.

that towbar is currently on the front of our 800A, i haven't taken it off in
over a year, though it does come off and fold up quite nicely and easily.
i've used it extensively (amazing the excuses i can find to tow the Scout
somewhere), i think it was an excellent deal, and i recommend it to anybody
wanting to flat-tow anything.  can't beat the price, and with the way it
pops right off (two heavy lynch pins and two chains, can it get any
easier?), you could buy several sets of the bumper mounts and put a set on
every vehicle you own and just move the bar from vehicle to vehicle whenever
you needed to tow something.

they say the bar is only rated to 5000lbs, but i have it on good authority
that it's up to towing a bit more than that without trouble.  this thing is
*plenty* stout.  just my opinion of course, but i'm pretty impressed with
the bar i bought.

## >> Also purchase their $30 magnetic tow lights or splice the
## >> towing vehicle's
## >> light system into the towed vehicle's, and roll it on home.

an excellent buy, those lights.  i keep mine stuck on the back of the 800A,
with the rest of the cable coiled up within easy reach.  for thirty bucks
you get a pretty rugged pair of lights with enough cable between them to
mount on the corners of a dual-wheel utility bed and have cable left over.
the cable from the lights to the front isn't as long as i would like, but
it's long enough to tow an 800A or a regular TravelAll and have the lights
at the rear of the towed vehicle.

## >> If the towed vehicle will roll reliably, placing it on a
## >> trailer only adds
## >> the weight of the trailer to the weight towed.

i have to second Ted's motion.  the towbar is a really good investment, and
beats a trailer hands down if the towed vehicle will roll.  if the brakes of
the tow vehicle are up to the challenge, this is a very convenient and easy
method to use.  just hook up and go.  the bar i got only requires four holes
drilled in the bumper of the towed vehicle, and took less than half an hour
to install, which required me to remove the bumper, drill the holes, bolt up
the mounts, and put the bumper back on the Scout.  i put big heavy stainless
steel washers (which it did not come with) under the bolt heads and nuts
holding the mounts to the bumper, but it was probably unneccessary to do so.
i pulled our 800A loaded with gear from CA to TX (with a detour through
Prescott Valley) with no troubles at all.  well, none from the towbar and
800A, anyway.

my nickel, and the usual grain of salt disclaimer applies.

--Mac

---------------------------------------------------------------
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Wassail!

Krystof "Mac" MacBryghde
TyrGothi

http://master.triad.ath.cx/
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